Quint Studer: Hit the brakes on the ideas. Hit the gas on the execution

Have you ever come out of a brainstorming meeting all pumped up about all the great ideas, only to realize later that none of them came to fruition?

Most companies have no shortage of great ideas, and great ideas are important. Innovation is valuable. It keeps us sharp and competitive. Besides, it’s easy and fun to get excited about big ideas. What’s not quite so sexy is executing on them. And so, too often, these companies just don’t.

When big ideas are flowing fast and furious, trying to process them all is like trying to drink from a fire hose. People get so overwhelmed that they can’t take in everything and they can’t move ahead on anything. (This is especially true in small companies, where everyone is so busy just running the day-to-day business that there’s little time for anything else.) They end up going a mile wide and an inch deep on things instead of picking a few things and doing them really well.

My experience has been that the organization that can take one or two ideas and relentlessly work to bring them to fruition will be far more successful than the group with a million great ideas.

This can be confusing to employees. Naturally everyone believes their boss wants to hear great ideas. I just heard an interesting story about a new chief marketing officer who was having trouble with the CEO. At the heart of the matter was all her great ideas (believe it or not). What the CEO really wanted was someone who could execute the basics the former CMO wasn’t able to get done (like creating a new website).

Ideas matter, but execution matters more. I always tell companies to hit the brakes on the ideas and hit the gas on execution. This doesn’t mean giving up on big ideas altogether. It means being more thoughtful about which ones you pursue, then giving the vast majority of your focus to executing on them.

A few tips that may be helpful:

Pick a few big ideas that you want to pursue. Begin with two or three only. No company can focus on too many things at once. You want a maximum amount of brainpower and energy directed at a few, very crucial projects, rather than having it divided up thinly among too many.

Think carefully about sequencing. Which big idea should come first? Often there is a good reason to put Idea 1 ahead of Idea 2. Think it through before you set the project in motion. (However, don’t fall victim to analysis paralysis or wait for conditions to be perfect. At some point you just have to pull into traffic.)

Do the same kind of thinking after you’ve selected a project and are ready to get started. Like building a house, executing on an idea requires that you do things in the right order. Try to do too many things at once (or in an order that doesn’t make sense) and the project gets too complicated and stalls out.

Think about the organization’s priorities and the timing. A good idea at the wrong time can turn into a bad one quickly.

Build in some small wins to get momentum going. Start with an easy target goal that helps you make progress on your first big idea. This builds up people’s confidence and enthusiasm. Small wins lead to bigger wins, which lead to even bigger wins.

Know who your drivers are. There are some people who just know how to get things done. You probably know right away who these people are inside your company. Make sure they are leading the projects.

Tie performance reviews to getting these things done. Set clear, objective, measurable goals for the project leaders and weight them in a way that clearly shows they are a top priority. When people know they will be graded (and compensated) on something, they are far more likely to do it than if they are given some vague, open-ended assignment.

Hold regular meetings to ensure that progress is being made. These “check-ins” not only reassure you that your big ideas are being executed, they keep project leaders focused and motivated. They force people to show progress. Plus, they give you a chance to course-correct early if it turns out something isn’t working like you thought it would.

Celebrate milestones along the way. Rewarding and recognizing outcomes (not just raw ideas) sends the message that execution matters more than a lot of talk about what “could” be.

Having a process in place to help people execute ideas is crucial. Enjoying regular success is important for creating meaningful work and keeping employees engaged and satisfied.

When your company has a lot of big ideas that don’t get off the ground, people get cynical. They don’t believe anything is really going to change. This kind of cynicism can really drag down culture.

On the other hand, when you have a big win, people gain confidence. They get excited about the next idea. They get motivated to bring it to life. This energy and enthusiasm become part of your culture, and, before you know it, a focus on execution is part of your company’s DNA. This is when things really take off — and you’re well on your way to being a perpetually high-performing organization.

Quint Studer is the founder of the Studer Community Institute and a successful business leader, speaker and author. He is also the entrepreneur in residence at the University of West Florida.

Have a question?

Are you facing a small business or workplace challenge? Quint Studer can help. Email your questions to quint@quintstuder.com, and it could be the topic for one of Studer's upcoming PNJ columns.